The Rise of the Moon
by Author-sama Desu
Summary: Trained and raised by Danzo's Root, Kumiko struggles to find normalcy in her life as she is thrust into a world where she is constantly bombarded by emotions and "normal" people. Surrounded by equally damaged people, how will she ever overcome her own mutilated humanity and achieve her goals? -Follows only major canon events, mostly/AU-ish after Chuunin Exams-
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I'm only putting this up once, because it's pointless to do so every chapter.**

**Welcome, this is my first official story on this website, so yeah.**

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><p>CHAPTER ONE: A NEW BEGINNING<p>

章の1: 新たな始まり

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><p>"Welcome to the Shinobi Forces of Konoha, Owl-san. From now on, you will be known as Kumiko."<p>

The aforementioned ninja removed her owl mask from her face and accepted the forehead protector the Hokage held out, even though she already had her own. "Thank you, Hokage-sama. I am in your debt," she intoned quietly, her voice mature for one her age. Green eyes stared directly into the Sandiame's, and he instantly knew she meant it.

He shook his head lightly, his grandfatherly aura presenting the façade of a harmless old man to the kunoichi. "There is no need for this debt-"

"I insist."

The Hokage looked at her in surprise. Her voice was firm and steady as she explained.

"I once had no past, present or future. Only a mission. I feel slightly more...relaxed, if that is the right term. There may now be a sense of normalcy to be found for me." Kumiko's face held no signs of being relaxed, but it was not tensed, either.

The Hokage smiled, the wrinkles on his face displaying his age for the world to see. "Very well. You may come see me if you need anything."

"Thank you once again, Hokage-sama."

"Of course." He shuffled several stacks of paper around, before pulling out a red folder. He opened it, revealing the girl's profile information. A picture of Kumiko donning a bird mask dominated the top left corner of the page, titled 'Codename: Owl'. "Danzo lists you as a chuunin. You have passed an exam of some sort, correct?"

"Hai," she replied.

Sarutobi looked her in the eye. "Can you tell me what that test is?"

Kumiko hesitated for a moment, opening her mouth as if to speak, before closing it. She shook her head.

He sighed, and began to light his tobacco pipe. Danzo had placed some sort of loyalty and silence seal on the girl, a fact he had wished to be false. Kumiko would have proved to be a valuable source of information. Perhaps he would speak to Jiraya the next time he stopped in the village about removing the seal. It would be one step closer in bringing Root down. "Alright," he said disappointedly around his pipe. "As you are already chuunin by Root standards, and as Danzo's training methods are rather...Draconian, you will be allowed to keep that rank. But, you will have to register like all other new ninja: at the Academy tomorrow."

The older man quieted, thinking as he smoked his pipe. He retrieved another set of papers from the desk, flipping through a packet. "I will also have you enlisted in a genin team. There is an extra Academy graduate this year, and you would do great for balancing out the lack of a third member. This will also provide you with an opportunity to adjust to normal shinobi life. I will not be able to tell you your teammate, but your jounin sensei on the other hand..." The Sandiame quickly motioned, and a chuunin appeared by Shunshin. "Bring Hatake Kakashi here immediately. Tell him it is a matter of great importance."

The chuunin nodded and was off.

It wasn't long before the lazy jounin appeared with his Icha Icha in hand and a perverted blush dotting the visible areas of his face. "Yo," he greeted, before glancing at Kumiko. "You called?"

She recognized him as the "Copycat Ninja" from the standard issue bingo book.

The Hokage motioned once again, but instead of a fellow chuunin, a masked figure that Kumiko recognized as an ANBU faded into view behind the Sandiame. The ANBU produced a scroll, to which Hiruzen handed to Kakashi.

"This," he looked to Kumiko as he gestured to a confused Kakashi, "will be your sensei until you decide to leave the team and join our chuunin forces, Kumiko-san."

Kumiko nodded respectfully at the man. "Pleasure to meet you, Kakashi-sensei."

Kakashi's eyes widened and he looked at the Sandiame questioningly.

"Hatake Kakashi, I have decided you will take a genin team this year. Alongside Uchiha Sasuke, you will be teaching her. She is from 'Danzo's'. The scroll is a recollection of what you need to know, and the contents are S-class. Read it now and burn it," Sarutobi answered gruffly.

The Icha Icha was immediately pocketed, as Kakashi unfurled the scroll. Kumiko watched as Kakashi's eyes widened at certain points. She knew it was just a retelling of what she had said earlier. The man's one eye sped over the kanji, quickly committing it to memory before burning it with a quick fire jutsu.

"Alright," Kakashi said finally. "I'm guessing you'll want me to take her on a 'tour' of the village?"

As they turned to leave, Kumiko paused and looked at the Hokage. She bowed. "I serve only you, Hokage-sama."

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><p>The streets of Konoha were usually brightly lit up at night, but as it was sunset, everything was still lit with the remnants of day. The shadows cast over the buildings made it hard for the porn-obsessed man to read, thus he was actually giving her a tour.<p>

"Let's get started!" He had chirped rather cheerfully. Kumiko thought he was rather..._eccentric_ for a man of his age.

The two weaved their way through the streets, Kakashi pointing out the essential things and showing her how to get to those places. Kumiko dutifully committed them to memory.

"So there's Ichiraku Ramen, and the Dango stand, and the Akimichi Barbecue House- the bookstand!"

Kakashi stopped in his tracks, eye widening before darting through the crowd to the other side of the street, eye wide in delight. The passerby abruptly scattered at the man who resembled a rabid moldy noodle attempting to flail its way from the dish you totally forgot was in your fridge. At least that's what he looked like to the innocent passerby. Most of them merely shook their heads in an attempt to wake themselves up, and continued on their way.

Kumiko carefully followed his path of terror, bumping a boy in blue and white out of the way and earning a scowl in return.

Kakashi was practically scuttling the shelves like a crab, drooling through his mask at the shiny copies of the new books. He sheepishly stopped when he noticed her, scratching the back of his neck. "Heh heh," he laughed through his mask, "give me a moment."

Kumiko stood off to the side as Kakashi "browsed" the shelves, watching the passerby. People leisurely strolled the street, chatting to their companions with smiles on their faces. They were happy, she realized. Those _civilians_, as they were called, did not suffer the same trials as a shinobi. They all held a naivety that not even Kakashi, who seemed to be just as ecstatic, had. She wondered what it would have been like to be one of these people, to not have entered such a profession. What it would have been like if she had grown up without having been in Root. Sadly, she could not imagine herself with emotions; they were something that seemed too far away for her to reach.

Kakashi seemed to have found what he was looking for, and they were able to get a move on. Kumiko was able to get a glimpse of the cover — it was one of those _Icha Icha _books like from earlier, but with a different cover.

It was nearly dark when they were finished, Kakashi finally leading Kumiko to a two-story apartment building in the residential district.

She supposed it was adequate for a person living by herself, but it seemed small, compared to her former living quarters in Root. She didn't complain, as furniture and other things were already there, and because of the fact that it would be pointless to do so.

Kakashi produced a scroll from seemingly nowhere and handed it to her. "This scroll holds the deed to your apartment," he said absently. "Meet me at Training Ground 3 two days from now at 8. I'd like to test your skills before we meet your teammates."

She nodded in understanding, before the man's eye curled upwards in an upside-down 'u'. He formed the seal for a shunshin and disappeared in a swirl of leaves.

Kumiko shut the door behind her.

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><p>Two days later at 8 in the morning, Kumiko stood in the middle of Training Ground 3, waiting for Kakashi to arrive. Not much had changed over the day that had passed, unless you counted Kumiko's clothes. Gone was the Root uniform, which basically preserved no decency for one of the female gender. It was replaced by a black high-collared jacket, with grey cargo shorts and a white tank top that was layered over a mesh shirt. Her legs were wrapped in red bandages, and she had two weapons pouches strapped to her thighs. Two sheathes were attached to her back, one thin and the other thick and long. Kumiko wore her forehead protector. Her clothes looked very un-feminine, as so to say. The color scheme was the exact same as her previous uniform (think Sai's uniform).<p>

She had an earth clone stand in the middle of the field, as she watched underground below a tree.

Kakashi was late. Kumiko knew that it was a wise thing to arrive slightly tardy on certain types of missions, in order to prevent ambushes or surprises, but to be two hours late...

By the book of manners, being this late was an insult, unless he had a good reason why. He might as well not show up. Kumiko didn't know if she should feel insulted or what.

Then her earth clone was nearly hit with a kunai.

Her clone caught it instead, holding it in a reverse grip. Kakashi flickered into view on the clone's right, directing quick slashes at its lower torso. Her clone barely blocked them, until a stab caught the clone in the shoulder. Mud poured out, catching and encasing Kakashi's hand. He quickly ripped it out, nearly falling as a hand shot out of the earth and attempted to pull his ankle into the ground. He backflipped, pulling another one of her clones with him.

It exploded, propelling Kakashi backwards and burning off the bandages on his legs. Kakashi used this momentum to bring himself back up, but not before four more clones flew out of the earth. Two of them used their own strength to Kakashi high in the air, before he suddenly dispelled in a poof of smoke.

A shadow clone. Then the real Kakashi was-

Kumiko dived deeper into the earth, moving through it at a fast pace, almost as if she was swimming. It was when Kakashi's face suddenly appeared on her left in her vision that she did hurl herself up, springing through the ground and backflipping away from the site only to change directions suddenly. A gloved hand sprung through the turf where she was moments before.

Kakashi pulled himself up only to use a substitution as Kumiko pulled a strange looking instrument out of its sheathe on her back and blew a massive fireball at him.

His visible eyebrow arched._ A tool for magnifying fire techniques, how interesting. _That same eyebrow nearly disappeared in his hairline as Kumiko did something to it that caused it to disappear from her hands.

Kumiko dived into the earth once more, before substituting with a rock in the forest behind Kakashi. She henged into a squirrel and scampered up the tree behind him. Kakashi was in a defensive position at least twenty meters away from her position, meaning he was waiting for her to attack. And she did.

Well, her clone did. "_Doton: Antlion Jutsu!_"

In the span of 3 seconds, Kakashi was suddenly pulled in towards a massive hole in the ground, along with various other things. She quickly threw kunai with paper bombs at his feet, distracting him so he couldn't substitute, and pulled her tanto out of the long sheathe, leaping at him.

His hands were trapped in the sheer inertia of the technique, and he couldn't move as she brought down the flat side of her blade on the back of his exposed neck, slumping over into unconsciousness. Her technique stopped, telling Kumiko that her clone had dispelled.

She panted slightly, trying to hide that fact that she was tired. Using so many clones and techniques had used up much of her reserves, even though her clones were formed directly in the earth, saving much chakra. She was down to about 40 percent left.

"That's enough."

Kakashi shunshined in front of her in a swirl of leaves with his Icha Icha book in hand, feeling slightly disappointed. He hadn't gotten to test Kumiko in taijutsu or genjutsu as he knew the girl would run of chakra soon. Nonetheless, he was still impressed with the girl's jutsu library. She had been mostly reliant on jutsu, and the majority of her techniques had been earth, or fire, with the exception of the exploding clone, so she was earth and fire natured. He wouldn't be surprised if she was a ninjutsu specialist. It was rare among kunoichi, as their chakra reserves were usually smaller than that of their male counterpart. Kumiko was apparently a former part of Danzo's Root, so it wouldn't be too unexpected if he had done something to bypass that block in the road.

She was one step closer to receiving his trust. He didn't fully know her skill set, and she could just be choosing to focus on ninjutsu as to not reveal all her skills. "We'll stop for today," he said to the girl. "We'll pick up some lunch and go see your other team members."

Kumiko's eyes flickered to a certain orange book before she nodded and stood up.

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><p>There was a solid belief that Sasuke held ever since this morning, when he had been assigned to Uzumaki Naruto and some no name kunoichi: teammates would just slow him down. That belief was only reinforced as he watched Naruto wedge a chalkboard eraser in the doorway from behind his hands. No self-respecting jounin would fall for such a stupid trap. And he voiced such thoughts out loud. "Hn. Dobe," he started out. "No jounin is going to fall for that."<p>

The dobe turned, most likely having been ready to shoot some pathetic comeback, or even jeer at him, when they both heard the telltale sound of the door opening. A grey head popped in, but Sasuke wasn't paying attention to that. His eyes fixated on the eraser. The throes of gravity pulled it down, preparing to clothe its victim in its white dust, when a hand suddenly snatched it out of the air.

Their jounin sensei hadn't fallen for the trap, but he hadn't noticed it when he first opened the door. Sasuke didn't like the man already.

The jounin was a tall man, with spiky, grey hair that stuck all over the place. He was wearing the standard jounin uniform, but with a mask that covered most of his face. His forehead protector covered his left eye, and so there wasn't much of his face to look at.

It was the girl behind him that caught his attention. Sasuke's eyebrow rose a fraction of a centimeter when he spotted the chalkboard eraser from earlier in her hand. So it was another genin who had noticed the eraser. If a jounin hadn't even noticed Naruto's trap, then what did it make the girl who was to become his teammate?

She didn't even look all that remarkable. Her clothing was reminiscent of a boy's, with different shades of grey, some white, and some red. Her facial features were set in a neutral expression that didn't convey any emotion. The only thing that stood out were her eyes. They were such a bright green that he was certain that it must be the trait of some clan. Sasuke's eyes narrowed minutely. There was also the fact that he and Naruto were paired together.

There was a standing tradition in setting up genin teams, that the two smartest and strongest of a year would be paired together with the worst in grades or strength, so that the team would be balanced out and to pose a challenge for the two that were the strongest and smartest. Sasuke knew for a fact that the smartest in his year at school was Haruno Sakura because of his goal to become the best, and that the infuriating girl was his "number one fangirl."

So was this girl really strong? Sasuke supposed that if she were to become his teammate that she should be. He wasn't going to be pulling around anyone else's weight.

"Oi teme...Sasuke!"

His eye twitched as Naruto suddenly poked his cheek. He grabbed the offending hand and shoved it away. "What do you want, dobe?" Sasuke grunted, slightly embarrassed. That girl was also staring at him too, with that unfathomable look.

Naruto looked a little peeved. "You were just staring, and Kakashi-sensei said we were going on the roof, and you didn't move, so..." He trailed off awkwardly.

"Hn." Sasuke said, cheeks still a little pink. He shoved his hands into his pockets and ducked his head slightly forward as he passed through the doorway. Naruto dashed past him, yelling something incomprehensible.

Kumiko lingered in the classroom a little longer, before she flickered and disappeared like a snuffed out flame.

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><p>"So I'll start first," Kakashi said to his odd bunch of students. One merely stared at him. Another jiggled his leg apprehensively. The other seemed stuck in the natural brooding pose. He had the urge to inwardly sigh — his team wasn't interesting in the slightest. "My name is Hatake Kakashi. Things I like..." He paused. "Things I don't like..." His eye curved. "Well, I don't really feel like telling you. My hobbies..." Another pause. "I have lots of hobbies," he stated a little randomly. "How about dreams I have for the future?" He shook his head slightly. "I haven't really thought about it. So that's it." Kakashi's eye flickered over the three of them. "How about..."<p>

"Pick me! Pick me! I want to go next!"

Kakashi's eye drooped. "Alright, how about the overenthusiastic blonde over there."

Naruto's leg stopped thumping immediately. "All right! Okay, I'm Uzumaki Naruto. "I like ramen, Iruka-sensei, and Jiji-san! I especially like the ramen that Iruka-sensei buys for me at Ichiraku's! What I hate is the 3 minutes you have to wait before you can eat the ramen. My hobby is to eat different kinds of ramen! My dream is to become the best ninja ever: the Hokage, dattebayo!"

Not once did the blonde hesitate. Kumiko noted that the ramen shop Naruto was talking about must have been the same one Kakashi had showed her the first day. The way he talked about ramen gave her the impression that it could possibly be an obsession.

"Hmm," Kakashi then said. "Alright. How about you go next, Kumiko."

She nodded. "Hai. My name is Kumiko. I do not like anything, nor do I dislike anything. An activity that I do that can be seen as a hobby is training. I do not have any dreams, or aspirations at the moment."

Naruto stared at Kumiko confusedly. "Wait, you don't have any dreams?"

Kumiko nodded.

"Oh." That seemed to shut up the blonde boy for whatever reason.

Kakashi coughed into a hand awkwardly. "And last but not least..."

"Definitely not least," Sasuke muttered. He focused his eyes on Kakashi. "My name is Uchiha Sasuke. I don't like many things, and I detest many things. My dream is not a dream, but an ambition I _will_ achieve. My ambition is to kill a certain_ someone_," he emphasized darkly.

Naruto gulped. Kumiko's eye focused on him briefly. Did he think Sasuke was going to kill him?

Nearly all of Konoha knew of the event that had happened around five years ago — the Uchiha Massacre. It's rumored that it was the clan heir, Uchiha Itachi was the one to kill all of them in one night, except for his brother. Root knew that the information was true. No one knew why the Uchiha would do that, save the man himself.

Kakashi let that sink in a little longer before he changed the topic. "Okay, since we've all introduced ourselves, I suppose you should know that tomorrow we will be participating in a survival exercise. It wi-"

"But we already did a bunch of those things when we were at the Academy!" Naruto interrupted impatiently. "Didn't we already graduate?!" He waved his hands around as he complained.

Kakashi's eye merely curved. "Now, now, Naruto. We shouldn't get too ahead of ourselves," he placated. His tone grew more serious as did his eye. "That test you did to graduate? Yes, it was your graduation test, but only for the Academy. "

Naruto scratched his head confusedly, not really getting it.

Kakashi continued. "It's true that you were good enough to receive your forehead protectors that signify you are ninja, but you aren't ninja, at least, not yet."

"But-" Naruto started.

"Uh-uh," Kakashi scolded. "No interrupting. That test's to weed out the hopeless cases. There's one more test that we as your jounin teachers use to evaluate whether or not you are suitable enough to become genin." He pulled out a manila folder seemingly from nowhere and took out three sheets of paper, handing them to the genin and Kumiko. He leaned back on the safety railing of the roof, eye curling once again as the three read their sheets.

"A tip of advice," he murmured, barely loud enough to hear. Kakashi smirked under his mask when he saw that Kumiko's eye had flickered briefly towards him. But only one eye? He cleared his throat, before speaking normally again. "Just so you know, only nine of the twenty-seven graduates will pass this test and become genin. Don't eat breakfast tomorrow!" He tacked on as an afterthought as he began to disappear in a swirl of leaves. "Ja ne!"

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><p><strong>Well, I'm finally done with my first chapter. This is sort of a side projecttest for me, to see how my writing skills are, so bear with me. **

**For me, it's kinda hard to write Naruto, so if you have any tips, I'd appreciate it. Everyone else is just more predictable to write. Heheh.**

**Updates may take a while, with all my schoolwork and semester exams coming up, so if you do like this first chapter, you might not get the next update until Christmas break or so. Expect updates to be irregular, da.**

**I'm not planning for this story to be Romance, and so Sasuke's not staring at Kumiko and analyzing because he is a normal, testosterone-fueled teenage boy. There's definitely more to it.**

**See you next time! Ja ne!**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Hope you guys deem this chapter satisfactory. Enjoy.**

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><p>CHAPTER 2: THE FIRST TEST<p>

第2章：最初のテスト

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><p>"To pass this test and become a genin, you must get a bell. You have until noon to try your hardest. Otherwise, you will be tied to the posts and forced to watch as I eat my lunch in front of you."<p>

The four of them stood there as Kakashi set the small alarm clock, Naruto still scowling at Kakashi for being late. Kumiko turned as suddenly two stomachs made their hunger known. Naruto's expression was oddly pained, almost as if he was constipated. Sasuke's frown merely deepened when he noticed her looking at him. The two had took Kakashi's advice literally, and forgone eating breakfast.

Yet, advice was merely a suggestion. Without starting out your day by providing your body with the proper nutrients it needs, how will you have enough energy to do anything? And since Kakashi wasn't going to let them have lunch, Naruto and Sasuke were going to be weighed down by their lack of energy as they tried to get a bell from the jounin. She would be better off, as she had chosen to ignore his "advice". This would give her an edge, in what was no doubt a competition, as-

"Wait," Naruto interrupted. "But there's only two bells! How are we all supposed to get a bell?"

Kumiko stared silently at the two bells attached to Kakashi's waist. The line attached to them was merely thin string, which would be easy to yank free. Get a bell: straightforward, but easier said than done. Kakashi wasn't going to make this easy; the jounin wasn't going to lower his skill level down or handicap himself just so he could pass some twelve and thirteen year olds.

Kakashi, by appearance and in the way he presented himself, was lazy and usually had his _Icha Icha Paradise_ book out. His posture and the way his eye just looked over them uninterestedly proved that he didn't think that they were worth his time. He had to be looking for something in particular and so would most likely test her, Naruto, and Sasuke with the normal skill range of the average jounin as to give the least effort possible to achieve his intended results. Using his famous _Sharingan_ to test genin would be overkill and a waste of chakra.

Kakashi's eye curved into a smile. "Exactly. Not all of you will get a bell, so that way at least one of you will be tied to a post. That person will be sent back to the Academy," Kakashi paused. "You'll be allowed to use any weapons you'd like, but remember, if you want a bell, you have to come at me with the intent to _kill_."

Naruto scoffed, putting his arms behind his head. "Whatever. Kumiko totally saved you from that eraser yesterday! You didn't even notice it," he said smugly. "If you're a jounin and had to be saved by a person that's not even a genin, then I bet I could beat you with my eyes closed!"

Kakashi glanced over at her with a tinge of amusement in his eyes. "That may be so," he wryly, "but a deadlast is always a deadlast, and those types of people can only put out so much bark if they don't have any bite. Just ignore him."

The jounin's words physically stirred something in Naruto. By outward appearance, it looked as if the boy was struggling to contain his anger. Kumiko took a step back. Naruto's reaction seemed extreme to her.

Suddenly, Naruto charged. Her eyes attached their gaze at his moving form. What was he doing? It was so illogical that she did not understand his actions. Going up against a famous jounin rank ninja when he didn't have the slightest idea of his skill level? Naruto didn't even seem to know who this ninja was, let alone how powerful a jounin was.

Kumiko recognized the emotion that coated Naruto's face like thick paint. He was too arrogant and overcome by anger. It was possibly derived from his recent graduation to become a ninja — the arrogance would cloud whatever judgment the blonde possessed, and the anger came as an effect of Kakashi's statement.

So the blonde was angry because Kakashi had correlated deadlasts with dogs. But why?

Oh. So Naruto was regarded as a deadlast, and possibly got angry because he did not like Kakashi revisiting that topic. And that was because dead lasts were weak...so Naruto didn't like being reminded of a weakness.

As Naruto charged, he seemed to have some hint of a strategy in his reckless charge, only it was so simple that it couldn't possibly work. He ran at Kakashi's left side, which was a useless move against a jounin who'd probably overcome his handicap years ago. Kakashi had years of experience on Naruto, and was known for being a genius in his earlier years.

She arched her eyebrow up in an attempt to show her "surprise" as Naruto suddenly threw dirt into the man's right eye. It was another basic tactic that would be effective on most people of a lower rank, but Kakashi wasn't fooled. He slid to the side and caught the hand that was steering a rather sharp kunai at his body, and promptly flipped the boy over. Naruto grunted as he landed roughly on his back and slid to a stop a meter away.

Kakashi's eye smile was still present. "Hey, I'd didn't say "start" yet," he said in a chastising way. He was using Naruto's anger against him by making him feel like a dog who had done something bad.

Naruto growled, and got back onto his feet with a wipe of his face. Sasuke merely 'hn'ed in response. Glancing over, the black-haired boy had slipped into a sort of defensive stance that Kumiko vaguely recognized as the Ninja Academy taijutsu style. Perfect form, but this taijutsu style was often used as a base to more advanced styles. The stances were basic, and only worked to an extent.

She merely stood there, watching Kakashi. The smartest, and most logical thing to do right now was to escape his field of awareness and observe Kakashi to find an effective counter to his skills.

Every ninja could feel chakra signatures to an extent, the extent being a certain range in which they could sense others. From their fight yesterday, Kakashi hadn't sensed her from twenty or so meters away when she was preparing to attack him.

Kakashi was in a defensive position at least twenty meters away from her position, meaning he was waiting for her to attack. And she did.

Kumiko immediately leaped back when Kakashi announced, "Start!" Her leg muscles charged with chakra, and she shot far away from the starting point. She was definitely more than twenty meters away from him now. Twisting in the air, she quickly formed the handsigns for the jutsu that she had used yesterday. "_Doton: Hiding like a Mole Jutsu!_"

The sensation could be described as diving to a pool of water, but instead of a massive splash, she simply fell in as if the ground wasn't there. Her descent slowed, and she moved through the earth. Kumiko could still see what was happening above ― the mechanics of this jutsu allowed for it.

She was faintly aware of Sasuke, who was in a tree meters away. As she moved closer and closer, Kakashi popped into her vision and she carefully suppressed her chakra to let her jutsu keep running, but keep Kakashi from noticing her immediately. A regular, unsuppressed chakra signature was easily detected in a shinobi's field of awareness. With Kumiko suppressing her chakra, her chakra signature could still be found, but Kakashi would actually have to focus to see it.

Speaking of the jounin, he was in a wide stance behind Naruto, with fingers in the tiger seal.

Which was always the first handsign in a _Katon_ jutsu.

Kakashi drove his fingers toward Naruto's behind with a shout of his technique, sending Naruto rocketing into the water with a splash.

Kumiko was perplexed at the jounin's odd action. What was the purpose of such an act? The technique didn't seem very effective. To propel a person at that trajectory required a lot of strength and/or a boost of chakra, and it was very inconvenient to use against a person with the larger body mass. Still, this observation told her that Kakashi was open towards using unorthodox techniques. Perhaps she could use that to her advantage to surprise the jounin. He wouldn't be expecting a shinobi of her "background" to do the same.

Kakashi's test a day ago had only revealed the fact that she leaned towards fire and earth-natured techniques, as well as that she had a tool that would magnify her fire techniques. Kumiko had purposely dragged out the fight as long as she could, until around the time that they had to go meet Naruto and Sasuke. Hokage-sama may have assigned her to this team out of his trust for Kakashi, but Kumiko herself knew little about the jounin except the fact that he was an A-Rank ninja in the Bingo book that had "copied over 1000 jutsu." It was best to keep to a more "genin" skillset. Limited, but if used properly, the simple techniques could be applied creatively if she used them with the _Doton_ and _Katon_ jutsu she had already displayed.

Kakashi already knew that she was of chuunin level, and a former Root member at that. He would automatically assume that she was already more skilled than the average chuunin, and straight out attack him for the bell or use stealth. Seeing as Kumiko hid, he would be on his guard for surprise attacks.

Kakashi placed the bell under a tree, and set up a simple rope trap, all while he was still facing them, or rather Sasuke. He doesn't want Sasuke to attack him yet (or rather her), she realized, before Kakashi disappeared in smoke.

There was her chance. The mechanics of the rope trap required for the person to be detected by the rope as they either stepped on it, or the trip wires set inside the rope circle. It would be nearly effortless to go underneath and pull it down. Her _Doton_ jutsu surrounded her body with a layer of earth chakra, which allowed her to move so smoothly and swiftly through the earth. It also applied to any material objects she had on at the time, including her weapons. The same should apply to the bell and other items once she touched it.

But the thing was, she didn't know where Kakashi was, and the jounin must know that she would be somewhere in his general area. Her reach with sensing other chakras was probably only one-third of Kakashi's at best. She would have to be swift in getting the bell while she was still undetected: get in, get out while Kakashi was still focused on Naruto. If she could, Kumiko would try from keeping Kakashi from really noticing her.

An idea formed. She had only seen an object once before, but it should work. It would have to be made longer though, and wide enough so the bell could fit through.

She wasn't certain of what it was called, but she had seen it before in a bar, and was used for drinking. Certainly that would be a surprise to Kakashi if her idea was effective.

The plan was set into motion as she formed handsigns for a certain jutsu.

"_Doton: Kage Bunshin_!"

* * *

><p>"Ready? Start!"<p>

With the wave of his hand, Naruto, Kumiko, and Sasuke blurred as they leaped back with boosts of chakra. Kakashi watched as they all disappeared into the woods. He pulled out a familiar book from his pouch: _Icha Icha Paradise_. The three weren't likely to attack him this early if they had any sense of self-preservation in their brains. He flipped open the book, keeping his eye on it as if her was reading. His lack of attention during the start of this "exercise" would no doubt irritate at least two of the three, and cause them to either straight out attack him because of his inattention. Fresh students out of the Academy, along with a former Root member, definitely weren't going to get the true meaning of this exercise: teamwork. From what he had already seen in the Hokage's scrying ball and the team introductions, Uchiha Sasuke would be too arrogant and isolationist to ask Kumiko or Naruto for help, Naruto especially. Naruto himself had already tried to attack him head-on, fueled by his anger. Kakashi definitely didn't think that Naruto would be able to figure out that there needed to be teamwork unless there was interference from an outside party, and if any, it would most likely be Kumiko. That is, if she figures it out. From what he knew of the operatives of Danzo's ANBU Root Unit, they mostly operated solo on missions, unlike with Konoha's official system of three-man teams. It would be unlikely, but she had the most probability of employing the help of at least one of the two. If, she didn't somehow get a bell from him before that.

There was a ruffle in the grass, and Kakashi looked up briefly to see Naruto staring back at him with a kunai in hand. Ah, he should have expected that Naruto would be the first to attack, seeing earlier. The kid must be really that determined, or stupid.

As soon as he acknowledged Naruto's presence, the boy charged once again. Kakashi raised his eyebrow. "You know Naruto," he said lazily. "If it doesn't work the first time, what makes you think it will the second time around?" For further effect, he raised the hand with his book in it and began to read. He was on Chapter 26, and Naomi was starting to become braver in her efforts to show Haru that she loved him, and that meant a lot of touching in some very vital places. He let out a small giggle at a rather raunchy part.

"Why do you have that book out?!" Naruto demanded as he skid to a stop. The boy must really want his attention. Kakashi decided to grace his presence by looking up briefly.

He blinked. "Why? To find out what happens next, of course," Kakashi said in a manner that basically implied that Naruto was stupid. This was just to rile the blonde up and get him to try to attack.

Naruto scowled and raised his kunai. "Oh yeah, well we'll see what happens next!" He formed an unusual sign around his lone kunai. "_Kage Bunshin no Jutsu_!"

Kakashi lowered his book and put it away as his visible eye widened at the formation of several identical Naruto clones. Not even a genin yet, and he had enough chakra to make this many corporeal clones?! This would certainly be interesting.

"Yahh!" All the clones surrounded Kakashi, camouflaging the real Naruto. Kakashi merely dodged and weaved his way around the clones' punches, kicks, and lunges, before landing his own precise hits at nerve clusters on the Narutos. The area grew more and hazier as Kakashi took down the clones with only his hands, and it wasn't long before one lone Naruto lay in the dust groaning. Kakashi patted the grime that had somehow gotten on his hands onto his pants.

"Serves you right," he said. "What good will it do if your opponent can just dodge your attacks? Maybe be faster next time, or even try to surprise me instead attacking head-on. Sometimes quality is better than quantity, you know."

But maybe he did know, as the Naruto on the ground dispelled in a poof of smoke. Kakashi heard the noise of feet hitting earth behind him and immediately reacted.

"_Konoha's Secret Taijutsu! Ninpo: One-Thousand Years of Death!_"

"Aargghhh!" The next thing Naruto knew, he had been harshly poked in the ass and was sent flying into the sky, clutching his rear as he plunged into the lake. Kakashi resumed his former position, standing upright. He reached into his pouch for his _Icha Icha_, but decided otherwise when his hand closed around a coil of ninja wire. He would set up a small trap for Naruto. The boy liked to charge straight into things and by what had transpired moments before, he came up with strategies as he went along. That could be his downfall if he relied on that alone, just like how it will be in a few minutes.

Oh, that was ironic. Kakashi was already trying to help these kids as if they were already his students. Maybe this would be the year he finally did take on a team. Maybe it would, if these three showed what he was looking for.

Kakashi set the trap underneath a nearby tree, where the glint of the morning sun would reflect off the bell and catch Naruto's attention, and with a quick shunshin, disappeared up a tree actually quite close to where Sasuke was. Once he triggered the trap, and went down to get the bell he would let his guard go down for a moment, a moment in which the Uchiha would undoubtedly take to strike. That would start his test for the 'Rookie of the Year', who actually hadn't done anything yet. All he had done was watch. And so had Kumiko, but he hadn't spotted or detected her yet.

He'd then leave Naruto alone for a bit, which should let the boy stew and think of a plan while Kakashi dealt with Sasuke and Kumiko. The boy might think to get some help while he was at it.

His visible eye widened suddenly. Where did she come from?

He flickered over to the trap in a _shunshin_, where he had felt Kumiko's chakra signature briefly flare into existence, just to see the bell disappear down a bright blue funnel in the middle of his trap. Kakashi pulled it out with a yank. "Well, what do we have here?"

The blue funnel was connected to a long tube that curled once it was pulled out. "A beer bong?" He said curiously. Where would a person like Kumiko learn about such a thing? No Ro-

The beer bong suddenly wrapped itself tightly around Kakashi's torso, yanking itself from his grasp and clouding his vision with a poof of smoke. Kumiko grinned up at him, or rather the large exploding tag wrapped around her mouth.

_Kinky-wait! Oh shi-_

The clone exploded, but luckily Kakashi had substituted the barest of moments before. Sasuke would have to wait for now; the moment he had substituted, a hand wrapped around his ankle and tried to pull him down. He backflipped and pulled Kumiko up into the air, before slamming that ankle down in what would have been a painful heel drop, if Kumiko hadn't let go at the last moment.

She used the momentum to roll away and drew a short, tip-less tanto, before disappearing in a poof of smoke. Kakashi sensed the chakra output appear on his left, and raised a kunai to block her next move. Surprisingly it was also a kunai that met his, before he jumped back to avoid a slash from Kumiko's tanto. This pattern continued, with Kumiko slicing at him with her blades left and right and Kakashi merely blocking instead of retaliating (_she already had a bell; why else would she try to fight him?_), before Kumiko overstepped as she attempted to attack him and fell. He threw a kunai at her to pin the side of her jacket that was flapping loosely, but she rolled around him and threw down a smoke bomb.

Kakashi didn't even get a moment of rest before his ears picked up the telltale whistle of flying weapons and ducked, his eyes in the process trailing down onto a lone silver bell laying in the matted grass. His fingers closed around the bell just as Sasuke appeared in the waning smoke. The boy threw a kunai that he merely caught and hurled back, but Sasuke just dodged and rushed at him. He let out a yell and threw a punch at the jounin's face that the said man just redirected it. Kakashi took the offense in this fight, and struck a nerve cluster just as Sasuke tried to land a chop to the side of Kakashi's neck. His swing missed, partly because he was just too short and Kakashi had faster reflexes. Sasuke's arm fell limply to the side, and the boy slid back, watching Kakashi warily.

Kakashi took the chance to reattach the silver bell to its original spot on his waist, noticing Sasuke's clenched fist and the way his eyes followed the bell. The Uchiha boy had been listed as Academy Rookie of the Year, and was placed in a group with Naruto to balance out their intelligence and skill levels. Sasuke was certainly skilled in the Academy taijutsu, and he could see where the boy was going with the kunai move at the beginning, but he was lacking that extra something that defined the past Rookies of the Year. He probably hadn't shown it yet, as Kakashi wasn't letting him with that disabled arm.

"Already giving up, Sasuke?" He said lazily. "Alrightly then." Kakashi then turned his back on Sasuke and began walking. This would infuriate the boy and no doubt provide motivation for him to do something.

"_Katon: Grand Fireball Jutsu_!"

There it was. Kakashi threw up his own jutsu in return, a defensive technique to make Sasuke think he was being serious about this fight. Then the boy would try harder. Kakashi formed several handsigns. "_Doton: Earth Mud Wall!_"

The flames of Sasuke's jutsu splashed harmlessly at the mud wall, but Kakashi could still feel the heat of the flames. He had only expected a lower rank jutsu, not one this chakra-wasting. A genin of his rank should not have this much chakra; this size of reserves were more fitting of a chuunin. Naruto and Sasuke had turned out to be quite the surprises, as well as Kumiko, but he hadn't gotten to fully see the extent of her abilities. She seemed to be concealing them, but for the three as a whole, Kakashi sure they could become something great. Now if only they figured out that he wanted to see teamwork from all of them.

As soon as he released the shield of sorts, Sasuke jumped over the wall and attempted to strike at him from above. Kakashi reached out to grab his arm and throw him back, but Sasuke suddenly dispelled as soon as the jounin touched him. A bunshin, Kakashi realized.

"Yahhhhh!" He whirled around just as Sasuke spun back with a kunai and kicked at Kakashi's midsection, probably intending to knock him backwards, but Kakashi caught the offending foot and twisted, flipping Sasuke into the dirt. He placed a foot on the Uchiha's head to keep him down as he started to struggle. Maybe he should put a genjutsu on the boy, but which one? His thoughts roamed the gutter of his mind — he hadn't gotten his full daily dose of erotica to keep the thoughts away, and Kakashi let out a small perverted giggle.

* * *

><p>Naruto shook his hair dry much like how a dog would, and scowled when he couldn't see Kakashi anywhere. But then, that was probably a good thing. He could already hear Iruka-sensei. He'd go off in one of his lectures, something like:<p>

_Naruto, stealth and being familiar with the behavioral patterns of your enemies will become your advantage in an uncoordinated attack. Even without a plan, knowing how your enemy will react will allow you to act accordingly and possibly expose their weaknesses. Of course, this would be a last resort, because this has a very slim chance of success._

Whatever. He rubbed his butt absently, trying not to think too much of the way Kakashi touched him. Now he was scarred for life! The one-eyed bastard better watch out; even though he had already made a promise to Jiji that he would stop his pranks once he became a ninja, Kakashi was a bastard that deserved explode-with-pressure paint balloons in his pants for a week or two. Uzumaki Naruto wasn't the best prankster in Konoha for nothing! He wasn't giving up his title so easily.

He was going to find that one-eyed bastard and shove that book up his ass.

Just now if only he could find Kakashi. It was almost as if the prank gods were blessing him, as the sudden cry of "_Katon: Grand Fireball Jutsu_!" told him that teme was probably fighting Kakashi up ahead. Naruto cackled quietly and headed into the woods, slowly sneaking through the bushes.

He would get the cyclops-bastard from behind, and even show Sasuke-teme that he was strong so Sasuke would stop making those 'hn' noises like he made every time Naruto went up for skill tests when they were in the Academy. He would acknowledge Naruto like a real person.

He would show Sasuke.

He would show Hokage-jiji.

He would show everyone, all of Konoha that he was worthy of acknowledgement and becoming their Hokage, and making genin rank would be his fir-

"Ouch!" A rather large thunk to the head interrupted his train of thought, and Naruto let out a muffled yell. Rubbing his head irritatedly (really cause this had been the second time he had gotten hit somewhere), he groped around for the item that had attacked him. Naruto's hand closed around a familiar-shaped object.

He stood up in the bushes to get a better look at it, and his eyes had nearly popped out of his head. It was Kakashi's book! Now he could shove it up the bastard's ass! Naruto turned and was halfway-crouched again in the bushes, before he realized: What is the bastard reading?

His face quickly morphed into a creepy smile, waggling eyebrows and all. "Heheheh," he cackled, "Let's see what sensei has been reading..."

Only to turn bright red as he flipped through the book. That woman on page 169...was it even possible for a woman to ben-

A perverted giggle rang out through the air.

Naruto's head spun around at the cry and his creepy smile widened further. "Hey that's pervy sensei," he said gleefully to himself. He placed the book securely in his pouch and crept through the bushes, making sure the bright orange of his clothes didn't stand out too much in the foliage. He snuck through the small thicket of trees, feeling much like how a cat would stalk a mouse, just to see Kakashi make a few handsigns at Sasuke's body under his foot.

Naruto could clearly see Kakashi's pouch, which had a large hole in it. So Kakashi dropped it then, he decided. He could also see some of the other things Kakashi kept littered on the turf.

He thought of his plan right there and then, and turned back to go to the pond.

It was only a matter of minutes:

"Where's my book?!"

Naruto stifled his laughter as he watched Kakashi discover the 'disappearance' of his undoubtedly precious _Icha Icha Paradise_. The man's appearance could compared to that of a scared cat: his hair stood straight on end instead of its previous mess, the eye that Naruto could see was so wide and panicked that Naruto could see the whites from his position at 20 or so meters away, and Kakashi had a jumpy look to him as he flitted around the battleground, avoiding the downed figure of Sasuke. Naruto couldn't wait for the jounin to notice him.

"Naruto!" That wide, unfocused eye stared at him, tears gathering. Jeez, was it really that important to him? "Have you seen my book?! It's orange like your clothes, and says "_Icha Icha Paradise_" on the front with a picture of a man chasing a woman, have you seen it?!" Kakashi cried, sounding desperate. It was like Naruto had kicked his puppy or something.

Perfect. Now for the bargaining chip. He kept his eye on the jounin and reached into his back pouch, slowly for effect as he kept the clueless and unassuming expression on his face. "You mean this one?" He said coolly as he pulled out Kakashi's copy of the porn. Naruto was sitting on a large rock in the pond, so he merely held the book out, where it would drop into the water if he let go of it.

If it was possible that Kakashi's eye could widen any further, it did. "Yes, yes! Now be a good boy and give back Kakashi his book," he said in the same way that he would address a young child.

Naruto had to stifle a giggle. He didn't know if he could continue with this. He watched as Kakashi attempted to advance, and merely lowered his arm a bit. Kakashi immediately stopped, hand futilely pawing for it in the air.

"Please don't hurt it!" Kakashi pleaded pathetically. "I'll do anything! Here, I'll give the bell," the man unattached it from his belt and tossed to Naruto, who simply rolled it around with his fingers. "See, it's solid and shiny, like it's supposed to be!"

Well, Naruto had gotten what he wanted, and as a result, he hopped off the rock onto the grass, pulled his eyelid down and stuck out his tongue at Kakashi, who had held out his hands expectantly, and threw the book backwards as he ran cackling triumphantly into the trees.

It was when he was a good distance away that he allowed himself to look at his glorious prize: one bell, the ticket to his future as Hokage!

* * *

><p>Sasuke was left on the grass as he suffered through one of Kakashi's perverted creations. He laid face down in a position that suggested he had been recently squished, but it was not so.<p>

This was the position that Kumiko discovered him in. She circled around him once, before kneeling down beside him and rolling him over. She uncurled the fingers of his right hand before closing it, so that when Sasuke woke up, he would likely discover the small item she deposited. But maybe not, as she noticed his face contorted in a strange expression she had never seen before. There was also an odd bulge in the front of his pants that she didn't think was normal. She lightly touched his forehead, noticing the slight amount of chakra rolling off of it. He was under a genjutsu then.

Kumiko formed the hand seal for release at the base of his scalp. "Kai!"

Sasuke's eyes fluttered open in a matter of moments, and he slowly made to sit up. Kumiko watched him carefully from her spot, but as Sasuke caught sight of her, she was confused when his eyes widened and his face flushed a bright red. Why would he have such a reaction?

Sasuke scrambled back, only growing more startled when Kumiko suddenly poofed into smoke. It was only a clone, he realized. But there was a twitch down there, and Sasuke turned a deeper shade of red — something like a tomato. Damned Kakashi had put him under a genjutsu, and he had been too shocked to help himself. He clenched his fist and started to stalk into the forest, but was stopped as he noticed the feeling of an object in his hand. He stopped in his tracks and unclenched his hand and saw a lone, silver bell.

* * *

><p>Back at the training posts, a clock chimed 12. The whole training ground was quiet, save for a few birds that were startled out of their perches. Naruto and Sasuke emerged from their hiding places, one grinning proudly and the other quietly scowling. Each clutched their prizes as they returned to the original starting points — the clearing with the training posts.<p>

Kakashi was waiting for them in front of the middle training post, arms crossed. When they got close enough, he held his hands out, a motion for their bells. Once they deposited them (Naruto had to watch Sasuke first to get the idea), the jounin motioned for them to sit beside the posts, where they saw Kumiko tied to the one in the middle. Sasuke's eyes darkened, but he merely placed himself on her right and sat down. Naruto, trying to seem cool, did the same on her left, grinning as he did so. He had tricked Kakashi after all, and since he had gotten a bell, he passed.

Said man simply stared down at the three of them, somehow making them all feel he was looking at the three individually. Naruto shuddered inwardly. That look was conveying complete disappointment — it was just as bad as Hokage-jiji's when Naruto had overdone a prank.

"You three fail," Kakashi stated bluntly.

Naruto spluttered in shock. But he had gotten a bell! "What are you talking about?!" He said indignantly. "Me and Sasuke-teme both got bells, and you said that if we wanted to become genin, we had to get a bell! Right, teme?" He said pointedly to Sasuke, unsubtly asking for support.

Sasuke was quiet for a moment, mind in turmoil. He finally decided. "Hn," he grudgingly grit out, before shooting a dirty look at Kumiko as if it was her fault. He quickly looked away when her eye focused on him.

"While you did get the bells," Kakashi drawled in return with his hands in his pockets, "you didn't show what I was looking for. You three should quit being ninjas." Purely for effect, of course.

"Naruto!" The boy shot to attention. "You did get a bell in the end, by use of underhanded tactics, but anyone could have done it if they had a brain."

"Sasuke!" Sasuke's eyes rose slowly to meet Kakashi's. "You did display a wide range of skills," Sasuke 'hn'ed, "but your arrogance led you to underestimate me and overestimate yourself."

"Kumiko!" Said girl stared back at him. "Your efforts in the end did little to help yourself."

Kakashi, of course, was exaggerating on the real extent of their flaws. They all had performed well, even with Naruto and his little trick at the end; most people wouldn't take note that he valued his _Icha Icha_, or try to expose it, even if they didn't know if it was fully true.

This would help set the three- really two (he knew Kumiko had given her bell to Sasuke) into the right mindset.

Now for a little more kindling for the fire. "Naruto, Sasuke," he continued, making sure to keep his eyes on them, "you may have gotten bells, but you took the entire time period to achieve it. As a shinobi, your goal for every mission is to finish the mission successfully and efficiently. The time wasted could endanger the lives of your teammates in a situation, putting all of you in danger. But also note that this doesn't mean you should be reckless."

"A successful mission is where all the shinobi on a team are able to work together to get things done correctly," he lectured, beginning to slowly pace around as the children's eyes focused on him. "Using your previous situation, what if you three worked together to get the bells? Most likely you would have had an easier time, and it wouldn't have taken as long. Perhaps I would have let you out for the rest of the day."

Kakashi turned and walked to a platform with a large, kunai-shaped stone positioned on it, and retrieved two bento boxes, handing them to Naruto and Sasuke. "I'll let you think about what I said as you eat. Just don't give any to Kumiko," he instructed. "I have to go do something, so I'll be right back," Kakashi excused. "Don't try any funny business."

"Don't worry, we won't," Naruto dismissed over his lunch. He was salivating; he was so hungry!

As Naruto dug in, Sasuke's remained on the ground near his feet. His hands were clasped in the position Kumiko had seen yesterday when they introduced each other. Yet he wasn't eating when he hadn't eaten anything all day. "Why aren't you eating your lunch?" She asked bluntly to him.

He didn't respond at first, but instead retaliated with a question of his own. "Why did you do it?"

Likely he was referring to earlier. The answer was very straightforward, yet it required a long string of explanation. Since he actually wanted to know, and since parting with this knowledge wouldn't be of too much consequence, she would start with the gist of it. "I didn't need a bell," she stated in reply.

Naruto stopped chewing for a moment. "What do you mean you didn't need a bell?" He asked incredulously. "Don't you want to pass and become an actual ninja?"

At both of their incredulous looks, she continued. "It was simple. I was already a genin." It wasn't a lie, merely a statement of truth. Danzo had used the same rankings for his faction, and it might be more believable than if she said she was a chuunin.

"What do you mean?!" Naruto gasped in surprise.

She hadn't felt emotions in such a long time, but she was certain what she just felt had been amusement, which was strange as she hadn't felt it in the past. maybe she was imagining it? She shrugged, to show that her decision hadn't taken that much thought to enact. "Kakashi had said that in order to become a genin, you would need a bell. I had realized that I didn't need it, so I trailed you, Naruto, until you got your bell from Kakashi. That was when I saw Sasuke and gave it to him. This way, the consequences of my actions benefit the village by adding two new ninja to its ranks. That was what I thought until Kakashi refused to accept you," Kumiko mused.

Naruto gaped in response.

"Did it while I was still weak, so I couldn't do anything. I don't need your pity," Sasuke muttered under his breath, noticing her bright green eye looking at him again. This time he returned Kumiko's stare.

He picked up his bento box and held it out to her in a swift motion. "Take it. You deserved it, and I should have been tied to the middle," he grit out, looking away from her in embarrassment.

"No, it's fine," Kumiko said plainly in reply. She could survive without it, and she had breakfast. "You didn't eat breakfast today; you should take it."

Sasuke felt a slight twinge of annoyance. He didn't need her pity, and his pride would not survive to the next day if he ate the food. He opened the bento and abruptly stood up, and with one swift stride, picked a clump of rice with the chopsticks and shoved it into Kumiko's mouth. "You will take this, even if I have to feed you myself."

Kumiko stared at him with slight surprise as she hesitantly chewed and swallowed, opening her mouth as he went to put another clump in her mouth. This was the perfect opportunity.

Naruto stared, mouth gaping like a fish until he realized what Sasuke was doing. "What are doing teme?! Pervy-sensei said we shouldn't feed h-"

"I'm doing what is right," Sasuke interrupted curtly as he continued to give food to Kumiko, no one noticing what she was doing.

Naruto looked down at his own bento, which was mostly eaten by now. Kumiko would rather fail and let Sasuke and him become a team rather than keeping the bell for herself. He let out a challenging grin to Sasuke. Maybe Sasuke had come to the conclusion first, but Naruto would be damned if he let himself be shown up by the bastard. "Hmph, teme, move aside! I'll give Kumiko some of my food too," he announced.

Before he could even take a step, there was a large bang as the earth exploded in front of them. The bonds tying Kumiko to the post fell away suddenly, as did the kunai that had cut them. Kumiko ducked around Sasuke, lest the wind blow him backwards into her, and steadied herself by sticking to the ground with chakra, prepared to defend. Kakashi flew at them, a massive dust cloud trailing behind, looking like he was ready to deliver divine punishment.

"YOU!" The three steadied themselves as a mighty backlash of wind furiously beat at them. Naruto let out a strangled noise at the killing intent that surrounded them.

"Wait, wait!" He cried out, only to scream as Kakashi's face suddenly appeared inches from his. "Ah!"

"Yes?" Kakashi inquired, so sickly sweet that it was scary in itself. Naruto barely swallowed the upcoming lump of nervousness and quickly thought of something to say. His tongue nearly tripped over the words. "Teamwork!" He blurted, looking a little confused himself before his mind told him to go with it. "Yeah, teamwork," Naruto affirmed. "How can we work together if we don't care for one another?"

Kakashi's eye twinkled a bit as Sasuke picked up where Naruto left off. "Hn. Otherwise, Kumiko would slow us down."

Kakashi doubted that, but let the children have their fun.

He looked expectantly at Kumiko, who did not fail to deliver. "There is also the reason that in the Konoha Shinobi System, genin units are comprised of _three_ genin," she pointed out. Kakashi noticed the sudden, minute widening of her eyes, and frowned behind his mask. She had sensed them?

He held his hands out as if in surrender. "Alright, alright. You guys pass." That unbridled feeling of triumph only lasted for a moment as the three standing children were suddenly pulled down into the earth, so that only their heads remained above the ground.

"Arghh!" Naruto yelped, while Sasuke extended his scowl to the jounin. Kumiko's eyes never left the jounin's, and it slightly unnerved him. That girl was definitely hiding her abilities, and it wouldn't do him any good if he were to underestimate her.

* * *

><p><strong>Annoying, but essential for plot. It's like what officially establishes the character's opinions of each other, as well.<strong>

**I tried to change things up a bit so it'd be a little less dry to read, and to stir the creative juices in my grey matter, but oh well. The 'kinky' part was for my own humor so that I can look back on this and laugh at how stupid I am. Hah. I'm also tempted to put in some Sakura bashing, as you clearly see that she is not on here.**

**It'll be interesting to see how this girl turns out. Shall I go the Kishimoto path, where the female characters are only strong for support, or shall I go for girl power, where she will become strong in bloodline and techniques like Naruto & Sasuke? I feel like that's the path that's the most fun, plus it'll be good for character development. Nothing's better than reading the part of someone who has a hell of power, yet is nearly insane. Or mentally unstable, kind of like how I want Kumiko to turn out. Oops. **

**A challenge then. Can I do it without turning Kumiko into a Mary Sue? We shall see in the future, or possibly next month. Eleven pages in Word took **_**this**_** long.**

**Plus, Naruto is undoubtedly the hardest character to write so far.**

**Oh dear, I'm rambling now.**

**Addressing one DM I sent to the lovely ****MerhppDerhpp****, I apologize for the earliness of this chapter. Christmas break this year is a bit far away, isn't it? I might as well post the chapter if I have it, y'know? Heheh…Heheh.**

**Goodbye.**


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